Player
Fullbringer
I have nothing to say.
Niji
|
Pause
Posted Jan 24, 2023 12:10:09 GMT -5
Post by Niji on Jan 24, 2023 12:10:09 GMT -5
Continued from RewindIt was less than a few seconds later when Niji released Maria’s hand, blinking slightly as her eyes adjusted to the early afternoon sunshine compared to the night of the Vegas Strip. She hadn’t been here in nearly a year, not since Valentina Tokareva had been transformed by the owner of the little shop they now stood across the street from. There was a bit of road between the small patch of green where they had emerged, and Niji didn’t try to create some distraction to hide their arrival. Not that she thought she needed it, her first ‘encounter’ with the mad scientist had been a delivery to this very shop. It had apparently been some sort of test, with multiple pieces of hollow bait having been left out to lure in hollows. Together with Janus, they had fought off dozens of hollows before the effect of the bait wore off. During the fight, explosions were going off, several nearby buildings were wrecked, and a menos grande had emerged. She had closely watched the news and social media to see if there were any reports of even minor damage nearby. There hadn’t been. Of course, that was not the first time Sadaharu Tendo had intersected with her life. The reason she had even made that delivery was because of a special favor the man had done for her father. When she pressed him for details after the fact, it turned out that he had helped her mother after the strange attack had left her heavily injured while pregnant with Niji. At this point, Niji knew enough about the spiritual world to know her mother had been, presumably, a bystander of some spiritual conflict and taken some sort of hit. But she didn’t know enough about the mysterious shopkeep to assume any sort of altruistic action. She nodded at Maria and gestured to the shop across the street, ”Let us have you do introductions, since you are apparently comfortable enough with him to refer to him by last name alone.”Momoshiro Hequita |
|
|
Player
You fool! You fell right for my trap!
Hequita
|
Pause
Posted Jan 24, 2023 14:22:36 GMT -5
Post by Hequita on Jan 24, 2023 14:22:36 GMT -5
Maria Tokareva Location: Las Vegas
Status: Alive So, Niji's transportation ability was some sort of nature based teleportation. They were consumed into the ground once they stepped onto a patch of grass, and they emerged from another patch of grass on another side of the planet. She had to keep this in mind, in case they got to spar or battle for real some other time. Tokyo was in the middle of the day, though the suburbs where the shop was stationed were relatively quiet even in the afternoon. Briefly, Maria took a glance to their surroundings. The asphalt of the street in front of the shop was noticeably darker, more fresh and more smooth than the old road on both sides of the patch. It was a scar of the battle that took place here several months ago. Before Maria could say anything, Niji suddenly recommended the Shinigami to introduce them first - that got Maria to pause and briefly humm in concern. She did not want to give Tendo the wrong idea about having told her of his involvement, yet this would make it a whole lot complicated. " Uh, did that imply familiarity? I just said that because he never told me his first name," she explained, with faint confusion. From her point of view, Niji was the weird one, referring to another person with a cold listing of his full government name. Maria sighed. " Fine, I'll speak to him first..." Can't be that bad. She approached the door of the shop and swung it wide open, then exclaimed: " Hey, mister Tendo! I've brought someone, we wanna talk, can ya give us a minute?" |
|
|
ADMINISTRATOR
Shinigami
There are many causes I would die for, but not a single cause I would kill for.
Momoshiro
|
Pause
Posted Jan 25, 2023 17:33:41 GMT -5
Post by Momoshiro on Jan 25, 2023 17:33:41 GMT -5
The unassuming shop sat at the bottom of a steep hill. The road (newly repaired in some spots) in front of it stretched upward for quite a ways before leveling out once more. At first glance, the little store seemed like nothing but a corner supermarket. It had your typical snack and beverage vending machines out front on either side of the sliding doors. Upon stepping up, the automatic doors would open with a pleasant chime. The interior was well lit with bright florescent lights. On the right side was the check-out counter. On the left were two small tables and some chairs. On the far left wall was a counter with condiments and a microwave. Wrapping around the back was a cooler area with cold drinks and refrigerated items. In the middle of the store sat a few isles of snacks and various other merchandise you might find at a quick stop shop. However, complete silence met the two women instead of a pleasant greeting. With his feet kicked up onto the counter and leaning back in his chair, Sadaharu was napping with an open manga sitting on his face. On the counter, curled next to his feet, was a pale yellow Maine Coon cat. It lazily opened one eye to peer at the newcomers. Then the other opened and it lifted it's head slightly. It had two different colored eyes, one a golden yellow and the other a bright vibrant blue. The cat, somehow looking annoyed that it had to move, stretched out and rose to stand. Then it jumped down from the counter, but as soon as it touched the floor, the small cat transformed and rose into a young woman about the same height as Niji. She still had the cat ears and a tail that swished back and forth behind her, but otherwise she appeared human. The little bell on her collar jingled as she settled into a stand and smiled politely at the other two women. She gave a soft bow before addressing them. "Good afternoon. I'm Gigi. How can I help you?" |
|
|
Player
Fullbringer
I have nothing to say.
Niji
|
Pause
Posted Jan 25, 2023 22:40:43 GMT -5
Post by Niji on Jan 25, 2023 22:40:43 GMT -5
Niji considered the cat as it transformed into a fairly tall woman. Early on in her spiritual adventures, she had assumed that hollows were things like bakemono, onryō, or yokai. She still wasn’t really sure how the spirits she communicated with related to the spiritual world as a whole; they weren't in any Shinigami textbook she had seen, after all. But she knew enough Japanese mythology to have a potential identification for this creature. Hopefully it was some sort of bakeneko here willingly. That was basically the best case scenario, but it could just have easily been some Moreauvian experiment to merge animal and human souls. She had no idea where the shopkeeper drew the line on his experiments, or if he drew one at all. On the note of Sadaharu Tendo, she didn’t believe for a moment that the man was asleep, nor that he was not aware they were here. Yes, Niji and Maria were both suppressed, but not to nothing; he would have sensed their arrival. Still following Maria, she glanced at the ‘sleeping’ man, then back to Gigi. Niji locked eyes with the heterochromatic cat-woman and made a strange sound that sounded like it originated deep in her chest, a kind of brief chuffing noise. To some, it might have sounded like she was clearing her throat in an odd way, but to a cat (or anyone that could supernaturally understand cats), the sound would have had a clear message. ‘Do you need help?’
Hequita Momoshiro |
|
|
Player
You fool! You fell right for my trap!
Hequita
|
Pause
Posted Jan 26, 2023 7:43:03 GMT -5
Post by Hequita on Jan 26, 2023 7:43:03 GMT -5
Maria Tokareva Location: Las Vegas
Status: Alive Slightly embarrassingly, Tendo did not greet them when Maria yelled out to the shop after opening the door. Rather, the shopkeeper was asleep on the counter, having gone to nap while reading a manga book. What? Even if it was a slow day on the job, surely, he should be always aware just in case a customer enters the shop - just like how they did? How careless could he be? Instead of Tendo waking up to greet them, the two women were met by someone else. The cat that was lying on the counter suddenly jumped down, transforming into a tall woman with multi-colored eyes. She introduced herself as Gigi - from the way she spoke to them, she must have been one of the employees in Tendo's shop. So that old man doesn't work alone, then... The Shinigami noticed the ears as well - as well as the tail flickering behind her back. So, a... a catgirl? How come those were a thing?! " Well, we-" Maria muttered, starting up on a sentence, but paused and glanced to Niji, who let out a weird cough of sorts, which didn't quite sound natural. The sound was way too specific, people don't cough like that... Hope that's not a cat-people mating call or something. " What the hell are you doing...?" Maria briefly mumbled to her partner after the interruption, then turned her attention back to Gigi. " We are here for your boss, we wanted to talk to him, It's, uh, important stuff, and we need him to tell us what he knows. Can we... wake him up?" |
|
|
ADMINISTRATOR
Shinigami
There are many causes I would die for, but not a single cause I would kill for.
Momoshiro
|
Pause
Posted Jan 27, 2023 0:20:20 GMT -5
Post by Momoshiro on Jan 27, 2023 0:20:20 GMT -5
Staring at Niji, Gigi blinked a few times before replying with a concerned look of her own. Was this woman alright? Thankfully her cohort, the dark-haired woman with the eye patch, started talking after a brief exchange with the taller one. Gigi's eyes drifted from Niji to Maria and as she spoke, the catgirl's polite demeanor returned. "We are here for your boss, we wanted to talk to him, It's, uh, important stuff, and we need him to tell us what he knows. Can we... wake him up?"Gigi cocked her head to the side, and gave Maria a puzzled look for a moment, but then her two-tone eyes went wide with recognition and she giggled. She glanced over to the counter at the sleeping man and then back to them. It was very clear she knew something that they did not realize. "I would be happy to let him know he has guests. Who can I say is he---"Suddenly there was a loud thud that rang out from behind the counter. Past where Tendo sat, there was an open doorway that led into another part of the building. It wasn't lit but looked to be a simple hallway. Anyone who glanced quick enough would have seen a small shadowy figure dart back out of sight. This was accompanied by the sound of giggles and quick footsteps hurrying up what must have been stairs on the other side of the wall. Tendo, somehow seemingly undisturbed, only snorted in his sleep and then went quiet again. Gigi, still facing the women, let out an exasperated sigh. It was clear by the expression on her face that this was some kind of common occurrence. However she continued on despite the interruption. "Sorry about that. What are your names?" |
|
|
Player
Fullbringer
I have nothing to say.
Niji
|
Pause
Posted Feb 4, 2023 9:30:36 GMT -5
Post by Niji on Feb 4, 2023 9:30:36 GMT -5
Niji shook head at Maria in response to her question. If the woman, Gigi, did not understand her meaning, perhaps she wasn’t actually in any danger from the man. She seemed pleasant enough, no obvious duress; even somewhat happy. Maybe there she didn’t need to assume that the shopkeeper’s activities were always nefariou–her eyes snapped behind the catgirl as this particular line of thought was interrupted by a loud noise in the back of the shop. Just in time for her to noticed what appeared to be a shadowy child running out of sight. Her eyes narrowed at the man that continued his ‘slumber’ but she had a sneaking suspicion this was just another fake body. Similar to the one the man had used to provide a distraction and escape from his lab after he started the Battle of Broken Skies. She bit her tongue, there was nothing she needed to say here. The plan was still to let Maria introduce them, so she let the Shinigami take the lead; hopefully the woman was just an exasperated employee, and the shadowy child had a benign explanation. It was possible this entire trip would be nothing but a big mistake, but only time would tell. Hequita Momoshiro |
|
|
Player
You fool! You fell right for my trap!
Hequita
|
Pause
Posted Feb 5, 2023 13:19:10 GMT -5
Post by Hequita on Feb 5, 2023 13:19:10 GMT -5
Maria Tokareva Location: Las Vegas
Status: Alive Niji remained silent, implicitly giving Maria the request to introduce them to Tendo's staff. She briefly darted her eyes towards the corridor behind Gigi, and narrowed her eyes when she saw someone speed through, almost too fast to notice. Though Maria generally trusted Tendo, she wasn't so naive as to not find that incident a bit... suspicious. As odd as it was, Niji did not bring it up, so, the Shinigami did not confront Gigi about it either, at least not immediately. Instead, she moved to answer the catgirl assistant's question. " Well, my name is Maria, and her is name is N-Gaia, yeah, Gaia," Maria explained. She almost forgot that the Fullbringer instructed to use the correct name when they were involved in the spiritual world, and, hopefully, the stutter did not come off as too awkward. Hey, if we're letting that shit in the backrooms pass, she should let that stutter pass, right?" I assume Tendo will know who we are when he's told, so that's basically all you need to tell 'im, I guess," the Shinigami figured, with a faint shrug. " But I hope you can understand us when I say that we can't divulge to you why we wanna talk to 'im. Important and kinda secret stuff." |
|
|
ADMINISTRATOR
Shinigami
There are many causes I would die for, but not a single cause I would kill for.
Momoshiro
|
Pause
Posted Feb 7, 2023 12:32:10 GMT -5
Post by Momoshiro on Feb 7, 2023 12:32:10 GMT -5
Gigi glanced at the doorway on the other side of the counter, as if expecting another interruption until Maria introduced the two women. "Well, my name is Maria, and her name is N-Gaia, yeah, Gaia."The blonde woman just smiled, making no outward acknowledgement of the stutter. She continued listening as Maria spoke, her tail swaying back and forth behind her. "I assume Tendo will know who we are when he's told, so that's basically all you need to tell 'im, I guess. But I hope you can understand us when I say that we can't divulge to you why we wanna talk to 'im. Important and kinda secret stuff."Gigi smirked with a wink. "Ohhh, how very cloak and dagger!"She giggled, in a cute way, before resuming her polite hostess-like demeanor. "It is very nice to meet you both. Please have a seat and I'll let Mr. Tendo know you are here."Gigi gestured toward the two tables nearby and then turned towards the counter. She gave an annoyed look to the snoring Tendo and then reached for the phone sitting atop the counter. She dialed the number on the base and then twirled the cord in her fingers as she held the receiver up to the side of her head. With her ears so high, it was somewhat cumbersome to use but her hearing was so good that she didn't really need it to be right against her ear like a human would. "Mr. Tendo! - No, I'm not going to call you that. - Cut it out. You have guests. - No, not them. - Nope. - Will you stop guessing?!"She glanced over towards the tables, took a breath, and then continued. "Maria and Niji. - Yes..."Gigi listened to the other end and then suddenly had a surprised look on her face. She glanced to the tables again as if studying the women and then continued. "I wouldn't say... angry. - Okay, I will let them know. See you soon."She was about to hang up the phone when she looked at the sleeping man on the other side of the counter. A mischievous grin spread across her face right before she slammed the receiver down which resulted in a loud clang noise that reverberated through the small shop. The man jumped in shock and poofed into a much smaller catgirl with lavender blue hair, amber colored eyes, a bright green ribbon in her hair and a dress which somewhat resembled a schoolgirl's sailor uniform. The hair on her ears and tail were sticking straight out and she looked shell-shocked. Gigi just stared at the girl as she caught her breath. "Mr. Tendo is coming up, Lulu."The other girl's eyes went wide in surprise. "B-but he was supposed to be busy all da-"Gigi gestured to Maria and Niji and upon seeing them as well, Lulu almost fainted. "I-I..."Gigi sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "It's fine, Lulu. Go upstairs. I think Josie is up from her nap anyway. Pretty sure she was eavesdropping again."The blue haired catgirl hopped up, grabbed her manga book, bowed in Maria and Niji's direction and then scampered around the corner and up the stairs. Gigi rolled her eyes and then returned to Maria and Niji over by the tables. "Mr. Tendo will be right up. Would you like anything to drink while you wait?" |
|
|
Player
Fullbringer
I have nothing to say.
Niji
|
Pause
Posted Feb 7, 2023 15:45:41 GMT -5
Post by Niji on Feb 7, 2023 15:45:41 GMT -5
As she moved over towards a table, Niji gave Maria a small shrug, ”Sadaharu Tendo is, unfortunately, on the very short list for people that might have told you where I was. He is one of the few people that is aware of both my spiritual and mundane activities. Do not worry too much about the alias here, though I suppose having you in the habit of calling me Gaia is not a bad thing.”
The Fullbringer watched the interactions going on behind the counter as she took a seat, were these various catgirls creations of the mad scientist, or bakeneko that were assisting him for some reason? Or something else entirely? It seemed that the shopkeeper was concerned about one or both of them potentially being mad, which was worth noting for various reasons. It also sounded like there were at least three of the bakeneko, maybe more, if that shadowy figure wasn’t the aforementioned Josie. It wouldn't hurt to push for a little bit of information on their situation; she hadn't seen anything quite like them before. She shook her head and smiled politely at Gigi, ”I am fine, thank you Gigi. How long have you and your…sisters(?)" It was phrased as an implied sub-question, ”been working for Mister Tendo?”
Hequita Momoshiro |
|
|
Player
You fool! You fell right for my trap!
Hequita
|
Pause
Posted Feb 8, 2023 15:47:51 GMT -5
Post by Hequita on Feb 8, 2023 15:47:51 GMT -5
Maria Tokareva Location: Las Vegas
Status: Alive Once Gigi turned to the phone and called Tendo - even though Tendo was sitting right there, which was confusing enough - Niji turned to Maria, and explained that there wasn't any reason to withhold her true name in front of Tendo. Yet again showing her hesitation towards the shopkeeper by describing it as a dismay, she stated that he already knew of both of her alias, so this was, apparently, pointless. Hearing that, Maria closed her eyes, pinched the base of her nose and, after a sigh, answered: " Fine, fine, whatever." She wanted to show that she was attentive to what Niji told her before and that she cared, and in response Niji immediately told her that it didn't even matter. Okay then. Right after Gigi finished her conversation on the phone, she slammed it down, and shook the napping Tendo out of sleep, revealing it to not be Tendo at all - rather, it was an another catgirl, who was awakened in a panic and then ordered to fetch one of their comrades for supposedly eavesdropping. While Niji refused the drink and then asked Gigi about how long she and her comrades, sisters, partners, whatever the relationship between them was, were working for Tendo, Maria merely raised her hand, pointing her finger towards the departing Lulu, speaking: " ...why was she pretending to be Tendo, again?.." |
|
|
ADMINISTRATOR
Shinigami
There are many causes I would die for, but not a single cause I would kill for.
Momoshiro
|
Pause
Posted Feb 8, 2023 21:28:17 GMT -5
Post by Momoshiro on Feb 8, 2023 21:28:17 GMT -5
At the taller woman's question, Gigi looked up to the ceiling as if calculating in her head and then look back at her with a smile. "You know, sometimes it feels like forever. Other days, it feels like we just got here."She was about to continue when Maria asked a question of her own. Hers was about Lulu and why she had been impersonating Tendo in the first place. Gigi followed Maria's gesture and shook her head but smiled warmly. "She likes to pretend to be Mr. Tendo when he is away and talk to the customers. She gets really nervous and anxious when talking to people so putting on a disguise helps with that. She chats with the regulars and keeps up appearances in more ways than one."Gigi leaned in a little closer and whispered just loud enough for the two of them to hear. "Except she tends to fall asleep on the job and it makes Mr. Tendo look like a slacker so I let her do it."She grinned mischievously and then stood up straight again and cleared her throat. As if on cue, the back door swung open and Tendo strolled into the shop. He was wearing his typical forest green samue and dark gray haori. Almost hanging off his lip he had a lit cigarette. Gigi scrunched up her nose at the sight of the thing and yanked it out of his mouth as he approached. "No smoking in the store. You know better."He ran his hand against the back of his neck and just laughed it off as Gigi gestured to the two women and then walked off towards the counter to throw the cigarette away. Sadaharu waved gleefully at Maria and Niji. "Wonderful to see you two again. Looking lovely as always. I understand you both have something to talk with me about?"He raised his hand before either could answer. "Let's go somewhere a bit more private. Customers and whatnot."With that, he gestured for them to follow him and he walked to the back of the store and opened the rear door, holding it for them to walk through. Gigi waved at the group as they left. Once the door was closed, he strode across the pavement to a little shed of sorts. It had a door with a very strange looking keyhole. Tendo pulled out a golden key, larger than most and with a rotating cylinder between both ends. He turned the cylinder and several different colors passed until he landed on blue. He put the key in and turned. There was a glow around the edges of the door and as he opened it... on the other side was a large open room with sliding doors that revealed an outdoor garden area. He looked at them and grinned before stepping inside to show it was perfectly safe, just in case they had any notions otherwise. Then he gestured for them to come inside and have a seat. Once they were inside and the door was closed, he pocketed the key and then immediately lit another cigarette. "I apologize, but I don't have much time. What can I do for you lovely ladies today?" That said, he took a seat opposite them and plopped down on the cushion. He got comfortable while he waited on their reply. |
|
|
Player
Fullbringer
I have nothing to say.
Niji
|
Pause
Posted Feb 8, 2023 22:09:55 GMT -5
Post by Niji on Feb 8, 2023 22:09:55 GMT -5
Inwardly, Niji sighed, the answer from Gigi was unhelpful, almost certainly purposefully so. Maybe she would have given a clear answer before turning to Maria’s question, maybe not; it seemed pretty clear that Lulu serving as a decoy while the real one got into trouble also served as a useful enough alibi. She painted on a pleasant smile as the man himself (or possibly another decoy, who could know for sure at this point) greeted them. If the man was requesting a more private audience, that was fine, she supposed; but she hesitated at the portal. More than once, she had rejected opportunities to see the other realms of existence; hueco mundo, seireitei, even shattenbereich for a few simple reasons. She reached out with her senses through the portal, and was relieved to sense more of the human world on the other side. If things went sideways, she could always just earthwalk her and Maria out, the place looked like it would have been an easy option. Of course, there was always the possibility that the Red Lotus’s nullifier had been another of this man’s inventions, and he could just use that on her if he wanted to. The Fullbringer sighed, perhaps she was being a bit overly paranoid here. Sadaharu Tendo had other opportunities before now to try to kill her, should he have wanted to. She stepped into the portal, and remained standing as the shopkeeper lit a cigarette and flopped down. She gestured towards her Shinigami companion, the pleasant mask remaining firmly in place, ”Miss Tokareva came to me during a business event asking about her sister, Valentina. I felt that you will be able to provide more accurate answers than myself.”Hequita Momoshiro |
|
|
Player
You fool! You fell right for my trap!
Hequita
|
Pause
Posted Feb 9, 2023 4:22:23 GMT -5
Post by Hequita on Feb 9, 2023 4:22:23 GMT -5
Maria Tokareva Location: Las Vegas
Status: Alive Apparently, the other catgirl, whose name was Lulu, was shy and preferred to talk to customers while wearing a disguise, hence she shape-shifted into Tendo. Why the shopkeeper allowed one of his employees to impersonate him, thus presumably causing shenanigans and scandals, was left unsaid, and though Maria could not comprehend why, she wasn't going to press too far on the issue. Especially as the real, or, presumably real Tendo suddenly marched in through the door. After a brief incident regarding smoking culture inside the shop, Tendo invited both of the women to follow him to the back of the shop - which, as it turns out, led them to a wide guest room, that was clearly not in the middle of Tokyo. There was no garden behind Tendo Shoten that she could see. Maria entered without much hesitation. What she was more worried about was not the possibility of Tendo kidnapping them somehow, but how she was going to explain herself for apparently breaking her word. Niji immediately made matters worse, explaining that she and the Shinigami met regarding Valentina's fate. There was a hardly a way to explain herself out of this one. " Yeah, uh, I came across 'er by chance and the conversation ended up going in that direction. Niji then decided to bring me here, thinking you would know more," Maria tried regardless. The question about Tendo's relation to Virgil remained at the back of her mind, but she decided to hold it back for now, and let Tendo answer what, exactly, he knew about her sister. |
|
|
ADMINISTRATOR
Shinigami
There are many causes I would die for, but not a single cause I would kill for.
Momoshiro
|
Pause
Posted Feb 11, 2023 11:19:39 GMT -5
Post by Momoshiro on Feb 11, 2023 11:19:39 GMT -5
Tendo's Secluded Getaway The relatively small and unassuming home was nestled somewhere in the forests outside of Tokyo. It could be assumed it was covered with barriers upon barriers, and perhaps other secrets, but to the eyes... it appeared rather simple. It was what is referred to as a "Minka", or a traditional Japanese house. It had tatami mat flooring, sliding doors, and wooden engawa verandas. The few rooms are divided by partitions made from washi, Japanese paper. No large pieces of furniture outside of the rather heavy looking dark oak table in the middle of the room. No beds or couches. In a closet on the other side of the partition were futons for sleeping. Tendo bounced the cigarette up and down on his lip as he listened to both women's opening explanations. Once they had finished talking, he looked from one to the other. His eyes narrowed on Maria but quickly enough returned to his normal gaze. The man ran his hand across the back of his neck. He was tired. The experiment wasn't producing the results he had anticipated and the trials were stretching longer than he would have liked. So after the opening remarks, Sadaharu adjusted the floor pillow and laid down on his side, propping himself up by his elbow. He blew out a long string of smoke and then replied. "Well, I'm happy to answer what I can. You just have to ask." |
|
|
